What Dreams May Come
by JAT.NJ
Summary: Lee felt like this was all part of his past, but if that were the case, where was his present?LK. S3 and AU pre mini. Spoilers for Maelstrom and Crossroads.
1. Chapter 1

**What Dreams May Come**

_Major __Cottle__ checked the read outs on the machines that were monitoring his patient's vital signs. He made a minor adjustment to one of the IV drips then shook his head. "Not good." He said quietly to the person standing on the other side of the bed._

OoOoOoOo

Lee awoke abruptly when the cold wet cloth smacked into his face.

"What the frak?" He grumpily said, pulling the cloth off is face, vaguely registering the pain in his arm and chest muscles as he did so.

Kara laughed. "Good morning Lee." She said. "As much as I love watching you sleep, I want my couch back."

"Couch?" Lee mumbled. Where the heck would Kara get a couch on the Galactica? More importantly, where would she put one?

"Wow. You really were trashed last night." Kara answered. "Tell me you don't remember where you are, because that would be a new one for you, Adama."

Lee squinted, he really didn't have any idea where he was, but the light was still too bright for him to fully open his eyes to find out.

"You win." He said, his voice gravelly from the sandpaper that was coating the inside of his mouth and throat. "Where am I?"

Kara shook her head. "My apartment."

Lee snapped awake and sat up suddenly.

Too suddenly.

The bright sun light sent a searing pain through his head, the room started spinning and he felt a sudden urge to vomit.

"I need the head." He said, covering his mouth. Kara pointed in the general direction of her bathroom and he made it there just in time.

OoOoOoOoOo

He splashed cool water on his face, rinsed his mouth, and braced himself against the sink as he stared at his reflection in the mirror. Was it possible that he had gotten so drunk that he had passed out with absolutely no recollection of the night before? And why would he wake up thinking they were stationed aboard Galactica?

When he emerged from the bathroom, she was in the kitchen washing dishes. She turned when she heard his footsteps.

"You ok?" She asked with a look of concern.

Lee nodded.

"You still look pale. You're not gonna hurl again, are you?"

"No." He replied, though he wasn't exactly sure he could keep that promise. His head throbbed unmercifully, and every inch of his upper body ached.

"Well, the next time I throw a party, remind me to cut you off early." She teased, but when Lee continued to look confused, looking around her apartment as if he'd never seen it before, she turned serious. "You're freaking me out, Lee."

"I'm sorry." He said distractedly. "I just can't shake this feeling that we're not supposed to be here."

"Oh? Where are we supposed to be?" She asked.

"Galactica." Lee replied after a hesitant pause.

Kara stared blankly for him for a moment then snorted. "Oh, yeah, right. The Galactica. That's the last place you'd want to be."

"Why?" Lee asked.

"Under your father's command? Come on, Lee. Don't you get enough ribbing about getting special privileges because of who your daddy is?" She tossed him a towel and he walked to the sink to help dry.

"No, I'll be staying here to teach basic flight," she continued, "and you will be the best viper pilot The Atlantia has ever seen. Commander Akamas will make you it's CAG in no time." She smiled proudly up at him. When he failed to react to her compliment, she reached up and kissed the tip of his nose. "Say 'thank you.'"

Lee's hand lifted absently to touch the spot where Kara's lips had been, and he looked at her, confused. "The Atlantia? I took that assignment when I left War College…."

"Why are you talking in the past tense?"

He didn't know, other than he felt like The Atlantia was part of his past. But if that were the case, then where was the present? He shook his head. It was all too surreal and Lee was a cold, hard facts kind of guy. This sort of crap was more up Zak's alley. He'd argue about whether or not trees falling in empty forests made a sound all day long if you let him.

"Zak." Lee mumbled dreamily.

"What about Zak?" Kara asked.

"He's…?" Lee couldn't finish. The word 'dead' sat on the tip of his tongue, but he refrained from speaking it. Zak wasn't dead. Yet, he wasn't entirely sure that was right.

"Meeting us for dinner?" Kara finished for him.

"He is?" He felt relieved.

"Yeah, Lee. He finished his first year at the academy. You and I just completed training and got our assignments. We're getting together to celebrate. Don't you remember?"

His brow furrowed as he tried to remember that - or something - _anything_ prior to waking up in this apartment.

Kara cupped his face in her hands. "Maybe I should take you over to the infirmary…"

"No." He said brushing her off. "I'm fine. Just a bad hangover, right? I just need a hot shower and a handful of aspirin, and I'll be fine. Good as new." He tried to sound more confident than he felt. He smiled warmly. "Am I picking you up later?"

Kara nodded. "Eighteen hundred ok?" She asked, sliding her arms around his neck. She lowered her voice to a more seductive tone. "We don't have to meet Zak at the restaurant until nineteen thirty and I figured we could have our own private celebration first."

Lee swallowed hard. Him and Kara? Surely the gods weren't so cruel as to steal that memory from him. And yet, here she was coming on to him. He leaned down and tentatively met her lips with his. The kiss became hot and hungry and when they broke apart, Kara winked at Lee while he tried to catch his breath. "Make that seventeen thirty, flyboy." She said. "I just thought of something nasty I want to do to you."

OoOoOoOo

A long nap and hot shower had sloughed off the last remnants of the hangover and Lee felt refreshed. Even his memory had returned for the most part.

He ran through the basics: He and Kara had met in their first year at the academy and had hit it off immediately. They were friends first, lovers later and things between them couldn't be better.

His little brother, Zak, followed him into the academy and was already creating his own reputation. One that was the complete opposite of Lee's studious one.

Lee and Kara had just completed their training and were enjoying a few free days before starting their new assignments. Last night was a party at Kara's for some friends from their class. He made a mental note to never drink like that again - or more importantly - never to rise to Woodrow's challenge that he could out drink anyone in the room. Though he was sure waking up believing he was fighting for the survival of the human race aboard his father's ship and that Zak had died in a viper crash just out of basic flight was part of the effects of the hangover, he still had trouble writing them off as delusions.

He opened the medicine cabinet and reached for the bottle of aspirin, however the pain in his head and chest that were there when he came home, were decidedly better. He replaced the bottle, checked his reflection in the mirror and decided against shaving. He'd be doing that every day soon enough and besides, Kara liked him scruffy.

OoOoOoOo

"So, Zak," Kara said over her beer, "I heard you painted your LT's room pink."

Lee snorted. "No frakking way."

Zak laughed. "It got me two hundred laps around the campus and a week cleaning the head, but it was totally worth it for the look on that bastard's face."

"Keep it up and you're going to get kicked out." Lee warned. "Your last name will only protect you so much."

"Remove the stick, Lee." Kara said. "It's not like you didn't pull crap in your first year."

"True." Lee conceded. "But it was always because you dragged me into one of your crazy plans, and we never got caught."

Lee vaguely registered Kara telling Zak about one of their exploits. The pain in his head had returned with a sudden vengeance, bringing with it a loud ringing in his ears.

"….isn't that right Lee?" Kara's voice came from a distance. "Lee?"

He pushed back from the table, suddenly unable to breathe. A sharp pain tore through his chest as he stood up and he collapsed to the floor.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I'm amazed by the strong response to the first chapter of this story. I really appreciate everyone's support and feedback.

I got the feeling that a lot of you were settling in for a long ride, so I want to apologize for the story only being two chapters long, but I think it only needed the two chapters in order to be told.

I hope you enjoy it.

--------------------------------------------

What Dreams May Come, Chapter 2

"_He's in cardiac arrest." Cottle shouted immediately bringing a nurse with a crash cart. He looked at the man on the other side of the bed sympathetically. "I'm sorry. You're going to have to wait outside."_

OoOoOoOo

_Bill Adama paced the waiting room nervously. _

"_You should sit down." Laura Roslin said, patting the seat of the chair next to her._

_Bill accepted her invitation and rested his head in his hands as he sat._

"_He's strong." She said, placing her hand on his shoulder. "He'll make it through this."_

_Bill shook his head. He wasn't so sure. _

_He shouldn't have been in a viper. It had been three days since Lee resigned - angered and hurt over the accusations Bill had hurled at him over Baltar's trial. Yet, when the claxons announced a Cylon attack moments after leaving his office, Lee joined in the fight. Bill could understand his son not wanting to abandon his friends, but he wondered if maybe Lee had a different reason for going out there._

_He had reported seeing Kara's viper during the attack, though DRADIS showed nothing and no one else could back up his visual. Disregarding orders to return to Galactica, Lee had followed his vision into a swirling storm. It had appeared out of nowhere - just like the one that had claimed Kara Thrace. But where Kara's viper was blown into millions of irretrievable pieces, Lee's viper had disappeared into the maelstrom and was expelled minutes later, powerless yet still intact. Lee was pulled from the disabled bird unconscious and hadn't stirred since. _

_The diagnosis was severe blunt force trauma. The list of internal injuries was too numerous to recall. Lee's blood pressure had dropped dangerously low during surgery and they had to stop and wait for his vital signs to improve. Except they weren't improving._

_And now this. His son was dying and all Bill could think about was that the last words he had spoken to him were cold and hard._

"_He knows you love him." Laura said as if reading his thoughts. "And he knows you're proud of him. Just like you know he didn't take on Baltar's case just to spite you. The trial was stressful for everyone."_

_Stressful, yes, Bill silently agreed. But Lee had done his job unaffected by the prejudice they all carried against Gaius Baltar. He wasn't so quick to want to turn the man into a scapegoat. That was something that Bill himself couldn't do, and he had fought Lee tooth and nail until he pushed him away for good. By the time Bill was able to see the facts as his son did, it was too late. _

"_Admiral." Cottle's voice interrupted his thoughts and Bill lifted his head to look at the doctor. "Don't ask how, but he's still with us and he's awake. But just barely. He's drifting in and out of consciousness."_

_Bill stood up to run to his son's side, but Cottle held up a hand to stop him._

"_Don't get your hopes up. His vital signs aren't getting better and he's still bleeding internally."_

_Bill moved again but Cottle placed is hand on his shoulder, stopping him again. _

"_He keeps asking for Captain Thrace."_

OoOoOoOo

_Lee's eyes were open and fixed on the ceiling when Bill stepped behind the curtain, but they turned to find his when Bill took his hand._

"_Dad." Lee mouthed the word rather than spoke it._

"_Sssh." Bill squeezed his son's hand. "Save your strength". _

"_Where's Kara?" Lee asked._

_Bill hesitated in answering, debating whether or not he should keep the truth to himself, but Lee spoke again._

"_We were having dinner with Zak.."_

"_Zak?" Bill repeated. "But Zak's - " He cut himself off. Lee was obviously reliving the past. Or a dream._

"_Did you hear her on the comms, dad?" Lee asked, apparently back in the present. "She called to me. Said she would take me home."_

_Bill bit back the emotion that threatened to overcome him and squeezed Lee's hand tighter. "Home?"_

"_I'm sorry about the trial." Lee continued, ignoring him. "I let you down."_

"_No." Bill replied. "I've never been more proud of you -" He stopped. Lee had slipped back into unconsciousness._

OoOoOoOo

"Proud of me." Lee mumbled in his sleep.

Kara had fallen asleep on the chair next to his hospital bed, her head resting on his hand. She woke at the sound of his voice. "Lee?" She said softly, brushing her hand across his cheek. "How do you feel?"

He looked at her, confused. "Where's my dad?"

"He's in orbit. But we called him and he'll be here." Kara assured him.

Lee shook his head. "No. He was just here." He insisted. "I was just talking to him."

"You were dreaming, Lee." She replied calmly. "Do you remember what happened?"

Lee scrubbed his hand across his face and a picture of Kara laughing with his brother over beers flashed in his mind. "Were we having dinner?" He asked.

Kara nodded.

"What's wrong with me?" He asked, sinking back into the pillows.

Kara smiled broadly. "You're dying."

Lee frowned sleepily at her. "That's not terribly funny under the circumstances." He complained through a yawn.

"Who said I was kidding? Close your eyes and rest." She said, but Lee had fallen asleep again.

She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "See you soon."

OoOoOoOo

"_Dying" Lee sighed._

"_No, son." Bill held Lee's hand tightly. "Not yet. There's so much to say."_

_Lee shook his head. "Don't have to, dad. It's ok. Love you." _

_Bill let out the sob he hadn't realized he was holding back. "I love you too, Lee." _

_He held his son close and cried as his life slipped slowly away. _

_All his children were together now._

OoOoOoO

Lee slapped at whatever was tickling his face and heard Kara giggle. He opened his eyes and found her face hovering over his, a buttercup in her hand.

She held it under his chin. "Yellow. That means you're sweet." She said. She bent down and kissed him softly on the lips. "It's over. Welcome home."

Lee smiled up at her and nodded. He could hear the birds chirping and the sounds of children playing, and knew that they were in Caprica City Park under their favorite tree, his head resting in her lap.

She had brought him home just like she promised.

A pyramid ball caught him squarely in the gut just as he reached up to touch her face.

"Come on, bro'." Zak cried out. "Me and Kara against you."

Lee stood up and tossed the ball back to his brother. "Sounds fair." He turned and offered his hand to Kara. "Shall we?"

She took his hand and smiled.

fin

"_For in that sleep of death what dreams may come when we have shuffled off this mortal coil, must give us pause..."_

_- William Shakespeare_


End file.
